As incidents of deaths of inmates and detainees in prisons and detention centers are being reported extensively, Advocacy Forum-Nepal convened a sectoral meeting with Mr.Bhoj Raj Shrestha, Chief Attorney, Province 1 on 28 December 2021. In the meeting, AF raised the deteriorating condition of the physical infrastructure of the prisons and detention centers followed by lack of access to legal representation, and torture, and ill-treatment and reportedly faced by the inmates inside the prisons. AF underlined the urgent need for monitoring and immediate intervention to rectify the situation in order to fulfill the human rights commitments enshrined in Nepal’s Constitution and Nepal is obligated to as a party to core human rights treaties.
Chief Attorney Mr. Bhoj Raj Shrestha from Province 1 shared that he has already conducted monitoring visits to the prisons in the capacity of the Chief Attorney since his appointment. Shrestha also shared the prison visit plans by a team comprising of Chief Attorney, Chief Justice of High/District Court, and Minister of Internal Affairs and Law, Province 1 to identify the problems and introduce prison and detention reforms in line with the international human rights standards.
The meeting further agreed to prepare a prison monitoring report with recommendations of areas requiring immediate intervention and submit it to the province and the federal government. Organizing sectoral meetings with concerned stakeholders to facilitate the process of access to the detention centers. Advocate and lobby for the allocation of an adequate budget for prison and detention facility reform.
The meeting was concluded with attendees unanimously agreeing to conduct activities in line with the commitments made during the meeting.
